Lately, we have been narrowing our yachtworld searches more and more specifically to include Island Packet 380’s. I think we have, with some degree of accuracy, determined that this boat would be a great boat for us and meet our needs and wants.

We are starting to get a better sense of the various features and options that are included on Island Packet 380’s and have regularly done some comparison shopping of one IP 380 to other IP 380’s, going so far as to create a spreadsheet that compares features and options of all the IP 380’s currently on the market against our previously stated purchase criteria and our want list. This has served us well to better guage the list price against what the boat has to offer and ultimately what we are willing to pay.

Today, we contacted a private owner who is looking to sell his Island Packet 380. Who knew that offer #2 would come only 4 days on the heels of learning that we were not successful on offer #1. I guess once we started this ball rolling, it has gathered some speed.

This particular Island Packet 380 is a fresh water boat, which is a very attractive feature. It means, less wear and tear on the boat and it’s components overall from the corrosive effect of seawater and salt air. This boat doesn’t have any much optional equipment aboard as the previous boat did however and at a slightly higher price point. There is merit however to not having alot of extras aboard. This means that there may be less changes or alterations to things that might not be the way we would prefer they be and we have the time to add our own customizations and equipment as time allows.

Buying a boat is in some ways no different than buying a house. You aren’t going to find the one that has everything you want. Any purchase will be weighing the features and the necessary compromises.

So, we send an email and have a phone conversation to discuss the boat and price with the owner. Ultimately, this round is a fairly abbreviated experience since the owner is firm on his price and it doesn’t match what we are willing to pay.